Bowne Park

This Flushing park is bounded by 29th and 32nd Avenues, and by 155th and 159th Streets. It is named in honor of Walter Bowne (1770-1846), who served as a State Senator and as New York City Mayor. Mr. Bowne's summer residence stood on this property until March 1925, when fire destroyed the building. As Mayor (1828-1832), Bowne is remembered for his strict policies aimed at preventing cholera epidemics. Following reports of an outbreak in a neighboring town during the summer of 1832, Bowne established a stringent quarantine policy regulating travel in and out of the metropolitan area. Bowne, like others of his time period, believed that cholera was spread through direct human contact. He required that all ships maintain a distance of at least 300 yards from municipal ports and that carriages remain at least 1.5 miles from the city limits. Bowne's well-meaning attempts to prevent a cholera outbreak failed, and hundreds of New Yorkers died of the disease. It was not until 188…